A rustling sound came from behind?!
Little Saim shuddered, thinking of a terrible possibility.
Could it be... the farmer's ghost was standing behind him?
Trembling, he turned around.
There was nothing behind him. Only the desk was swaying slightly, making crisp creaking sounds as its wood scraped against the floor.
Looking down, he saw that one of the paper pads wedged beneath the desk leg had been knocked aside.
The desk in this room was an old piece, said to have been in use for decades. It had been there even when Little Saim's mother was still alive. It was waxed often, so its exterior still looked reasonably intact; but with a lake near the castle, damp air seeped into the desk day after day. Its core had become soft and prone to decay, and one desk leg had worn away, leaving it perpetually unsteady. After moving in, Little Saim had placed a paper pad beneath that leg to keep it balanced so it would not disrupt his daily reading.
Now, the pad had been knocked to one side. He must have hit it when he tripped earlier.
With the pad missing, and after his collision with it, that strange rustling sound had arisen.
Watching the swaying desk, Little Saim relaxed slightly. He had thought the farmer's ghost was playing tricks behind his back.
Speaking of the farmer's ghost, Little Saim could not help turning toward the window. Yet there was no shadow reflected in it now, much less a human face.
Perhaps he had grown too tired from reading and was hallucinating?
Little Saim shook his head and stood up, cautiously scanning his surroundings. He saw nothing unusual. Remembering that the knights and Wizard Dru had both entered to inspect the place and declared that there was nothing wrong